Made in Bodine

By Shannon Wetzel

Reading St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s article on Bodine Aluminum’s 100th anniversary reminded me of my visit to the aluminum casting facility in Troy, Mo., a few years ago.

Like the story highlights, one of the biggest impressions the plant left me with was its open, organized and informed culture on the shop floor. The place was clean and uncluttered. Plant statistics and performance charts were prominently displayed and updated. It was my first real look at a true, lean metalcasting facility, thanks largely to its connection with Toyota. And I was impressed.

The visit also drove home a point many consumers still miss. Toyota is a Japanese company, but many of its cars on the road in the U.S. were produced domestically. Cars.com’s list of the 10 most America-made cars includes three Toyota models (the Camry, Sienna, and Tundra) and two Honda models (the Accord and Pilot), along with the Ford F-150, Chevy Traverse, Jeep Liberty, GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave.

While the argument can be made that foreign-based companies should lose a few “made-in-America” points since their headquarters and many R&D establishments are not based in the U.S., many of the manufacturing and casting jobs are based here and that puts a lot of Americans to work.